In various industrial applications, the interface between two parts may experience displacement due to the motion of one part or both parts relative to the other part. This displacement may be axial, radial or angular. For example, in turbines, such as gas turbines and the like used in various static and dynamic applications, displacement between some parts may arise due to the pressure differentials that occur during operation. When the amplitude of such displacement is too large for other types of seals to accommodate and/or the temperature is too high for non-metallic seals, finger seals are used to provide sealing against pressure differences (leakage of air) between two parts. Such finger seals may be used in turbine engines at the augmentor liner interface, the nozzle liner closeouts and nozzle liner edge seals, among other places.
To maintain contact and seal effectively, finger seals rely on spring loading and pressure differentials that occur in one direction. If the pressure reverses, the fingers of the finger seal may lift off the parts that they mate with and lose sealing ability. Accordingly, it would be beneficial if an improved sealing apparatus was developed.